Air Amplifier is Useful as an Air Conveyor for Light Material

I had a customer that was wanting to reduce the footprint and the noise level of his machine. His equipment trimmed medical capsule shells, 40 pieces at a time. The capsule shells were dropped into a chute and transferred to another location. The capsules weighed 150 milligram each, and they had to be move 15 feet (4.5 meters) horizontally and 3.3 feet (1 meter) high. The machine contained its own air compressor and blower system. The air compressor was used to operate air cylinders and other pneumatic equipment. A 5HP blower system was used to transfer the capsules. The blower motor, ducting, and cyclone separator was very bulky and noisy. They asked me if EXAIR could supply a product that would use very little compressed air to transfer the capsules without creating excessive noise.

Adjustable Air Amplifier

I accepted the challenge. The customer only had 12 scfm (20 M^3/hr) of compressed air that was usable. In looking at my options, I had to use a product with a large amplification ratio. (Parts of room air vs. Parts of compressed air). The best candidate was an EXAIR Air Amplifier with a 20:1 amplification ratio. The capsules are light weight, and the distance was not very far which made this application a suitable one for the Air Amplifier. I decided to do a trial test using the model 6032 stainless steel Adjustable Air Amplifier (Stainless Steel had to be used to be compliant). In my trial, I adjusted the Air Amplifier to the desired flow rate. I was able to move the capsules the complete distance. I then reduced the flow to see if I was able to complete the task. I was able to consistently mover the capsules at a compressed air flow rate of 7 scfm (12 M^3/hr).

In some situations, we can run trial tests to make sure that the product can meet the specification of the customer. This customer was able to remove the blower system, reduce the foot print of his design, and more importantly reduce the amount of noise. If you have an unknown situation and you would like for an Application Engineer to do a trial test, you can contact us here.